Meet our Staff

Marea is an attorney who has worked for more than two decades to improve the administration of and access to justice through research, writing, and technical assistance projects. Engagements prior to joining NLADA in 2014 were as: senior project manager with the Justice Management Institute, senior research associate with the Program in Criminal Justice Policy and Management at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and vice president of The Spangenberg Group. Marea received her bachelor’s degree from The Colorado College and her J.D., magna cum laude, from the New England School of Law.

Chris has spent most of his career fighting on behalf of low-income parents in the family courts of New York City, first at The Center for Family Representation and then with The Bronx Defenders. Before that, he worked and interned in New York, Louisiana, Oregon, and Ghana. He is a graduate of Columbia Law School, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and a member of the Human Rights Clinic. Chris received an M.P.P from Oregon State University while focusing on quantitative methods, rural communities, and child welfare policy. He received a B.A., graduating magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from American University with a major in literature and a minor in chemistry.

Otisa focuses on office administration and accounting, including accounts payable, accounts receivable, accounting reconciliation, allocations, and onsite registration. Prior to joining NLADA, she was at the American Society of Landscape Architects, where she was responsible for all aspects of membership correspondence and data fulfillment and provided assistance with the implementation of the recruitment and retention programs. Otisa also worked at The American Society of Association Executives as an administrative assistant and later as administration coordinator in its Education Department, working with human resources, membership, and marketing departments.

April is the Director of Defender Legal Services Initiatives, which advances NLADA’s goals and priorities through strategic initiatives aimed at enhancing public defense. For the last eight years, April worked as a public defender with the Public Defender Service for D.C. as a Reentry Coordinator, and most recently as the Special Assistant in the Juvenile Defender Unit at the Law Office of the Shelby County Public Defender where she was responsible for implementing Department of Justice reforms and helping to build the first ever holistic and team-based juvenile defense practice in Shelby County that employed both social workers and attorneys. She also has experience working on national reentry policy reform at the American Bar Association in D.C. and Legal Action Center in NY. She received a B.A. from Tennessee State University and a J.D. from Howard University.

As Major Gifts Officer, Chelsey supports NLADA’s strategic development efforts. Prior to joining NLADA, Chelsey worked as a major gifts fundraiser and consultant with nonprofit organizations throughout the country. She earned her Masters in Public Administration from George Mason University and completed her undergraduate studies at Brigham Young University.

Stephanie plans and manages logistics for a NLADA meetings, conferences, trainings, and events. Early in her career, Stephanie was the HIV prevention manager for the State of Missouri. Since 2001 she has worked in the Hospitality Industry as a meeting planner. Prior to NLADA she was the education manager for the American Hospital Association and regional meeting planner for the National Minority AIDS Council. She is a graduate of Florida A&M University and has a master’s degree in health care administration from the University of Kansas.

Yvette supports the organization in directing budget and cost controls, and accounting analysis and procedures. She maintains the relationship with external auditors and prepares detailed account analyses. Yvette implements policies related to financial reporting, budgeting, accounting, and payroll activities. She also prepares and reviews monthly financial statements and reconciliation schedules that support the monthly and quarterly financial statements.

Before joining NLADA, Rosalie was a public defender for 29 years. She spent the last eight years as the Interim Director of the Atlanta Public Defender's Office, in Atlanta, Georgia. Rosalie is nationally recognized for her achievements in transforming the business model in Atlanta's lower court systems from an assembly line justice culture to a client-centered, best practices approach grounded in principles of holistic defense. She is a forward-thinking criminal defense attorney and systemic reform advocate that leverages her experience to support the growth and development of public defense systems throughout the nation. She received her J.D. from Samford University, Cumberland School of Law, in Birmingham, Alabama.

David joined NLADA in 2013. He advances the policy advocacy aims of NLADA’s civil and defender initiatives through research, analysis, and strategic outreach. David’s background includes nonprofit, association, and political experience on both sides of the Atlantic. He holds an M.Sc. degree in Democracy and Comparative Politics from University College London, and he received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Nottingham.

Aileen is NLADA's new Vice President for External Relations. She is a seasoned fundraiser and a problem solver with solid organizational skills. Prior to joining NLADA, Aileen opened her development consulting practice with a focus on helping organizations adjust or prepare for changing circumstances. She also served as Vice President of Development at Reading is Fundamental. Aileen holds a PhD in history from the University of Manitoba plus MA and undergraduate degrees from the University of Saskatchewan.

Michael is the Staff Attorney in the Defender Legal Services division. He supports the work of public defenders nationwide, as well as improvements to indigent defense systems, through research, policy, training and technical assistance, and development of resources and toolkits to assist defenders. Prior to joining NLADA, Michael was a Consulting Attorney at the National Juvenile Defender Center. His experience also spans a broad range of other topic areas, including human rights, women’s rights, international law, racial and ethnic discrimination, LGBT+ rights, labor rights, and workers’ compensation and personal injury law. Michael received his B.A. from the University of Chicago and his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

Chandra provides administrative and programmatic support for the membership and training department, where she handles application and dues processing, events registration, and customer service for NLADA members. Chandra has been with NLADA for 16 years, and has also held the roles of program assistant (Member Services) and receptionist/administrative assistant. She is a graduate of Prince George’s Community College.

Brian plans and manages logistics for a NLADA meetings, conferences, trainings, and events. He has more than 20 years' experience in planning events and managing programs for nonprofits. Before joining NLADA, Brian was an independent conference and event planner working with nonprofits in Washington, D.C. Previously, he was the Conference & Training Manager for BoardSource for seven years. Brian also spent 11 years fighting the war on poverty with the Community Action Partnership (the national association representing Community Action Agencies), where he was Vice President for Programs & Grants Management. In that role with Community Action, he led the development of conferences and training & technical assistance programs and was the national project leader for the 1996 and 2000 National Dialogue on Poverty initiatives. Brian holds a B.A. from St. Bonaventure University and a J.D. from The American University-Washington College of Law.

Don is a nationally-recognized leader of America’s civil justice community. He has spearheaded NLADA’s civil division for more than 20 years, building the organization’s expert training and technical assistance capacity and advocating with Congress, the Legal Services Corporation, federal agencies, and four Presidential administrations on a wide array of issues relating to the effective delivery of civil legal services. Prior to joining NLADA in 1990, Don was Executive Director at the North Carolina Legal Services Resource Center in Raleigh, NC. He received his J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Radhika Singh is director of NLADA’s Civil Legal Aid Initiative, which supports civil legal aid’s capacity to apply for and partner on federal grants. Radhika also is an expert in Public Service Loan Forgiveness and income-driven student loan repayment plans. She previously worked in law school engagement and advocacy at Equal Justice Works, and was a staff attorney at the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund. Radhika received her B.A. from American University and her J.D. from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles.

Maria is senior vice president for operations and Board Secretary. She is responsible for NLADA’s administrative, financial and operational activities, and oversees its strategic planning process. Maria also serves as Secretary to NLADA’s Board of Directors. Prior to joining NLADA in 2012, Maria served as director of the Legal Aid Society of Columbus, Ohio, and she served on NLADA’s Board of Directors from 2007 to 2011. Maria is an active member of the Florida Bar Association and the American Bar Association.

Before becoming head of NLADA, Jo-Ann was the organization’s senior vice president for programs, responsible for oversight of both the civil legal aid and public defense program agendas. From 1994 to 2000, she served as director of the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, widely regarded as the nation’s model defender agency. She is a founder of the American Council of Chief Defenders, a leadership council of the top defender executives from across the United States, and the District of Columbia Appellate Practice Institute. Her extensive experience lecturing includes serving as a member of the visiting faculty for the Trial Advocacy Workshop at Harvard Law School. Jo-Ann received recognition from the White House as a “Champion of Change.” She is a graduate of New York University School of Law.